Instead of making resolutions, I like to choose a word to use as a theme, an anchor, and a compass for the coming year. For 2025, I've chosen the word calm.
The year just past was marked by a constant hum of low-level anxiety, with occasional periods of increased volume. I am not generally an anxious person. No one who knows me well would describe me as "tightly wound". But 2024 was a tough year. There was the increasing trouble with arthritis in my knee, some long-overdue dental work, planning for and scheduling the knee replacement surgery, a bout of COVID, the surgery and the small nightmare of its aftermath, the US presidential election, and a welcome (but stress inducing) influx of new work. As the year came to an end, I found I was not sleeping very well. I even caught myself grinding my teeth.
In 2025, I want to let go of anxiety as much as I can. I will stop fretting over things I can’t control (e.g., Mr. Musk’s shadow presidency and moves toward world domination.) I will build breaks into my work schedule so the deadlines don’t stack up like dominoes. I will nurture my body. I will seek calm.
The new year dawned with a bright, cloudless sky where I live. I'm choosing to take this as an omen of good year to come. (I only believe in good omens. Please keep the bad ones to yourself.) In 2025, I will focus my energies on the people, projects, and activities that support a sense of calm.
Have you selected a word of the year for 2025? I'd love to hear about it in the comments.
My Year in Books
2024 was the first time I've ever attempted to keep track of the books I read. I've always been a voracious reader, but I was surprised by the numbers. I read a total of 156 books last year. 27 of those were paper books, 129 were audiobooks. That’s an average of three books each week.
In addition, there were five books I started to read, but didn't finish. I don't hesitate to abandon a book midstream if I'm bored with it, or if I just don't feel any eagerness to continue reading. There are too many good books in the world I haven't yet read. Why waste time reading a book that isn't bringing me pleasure or in some way engaging my interest?
Of all the books I read in 2024, here (in no particular order) are 9 that have stayed with me:
Chain Gang All Stars by Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah
This is the book with which I started 2024. This novel imagines a world where incarcerated people can win early release by participating in pay-per-view televised gladiatorial battles to the death. It questions a world where violence is marketed and consumed as entertainment. It also explores where mass incarceration, systemic racism, and rampant capitalism could take our society.
American Flannel: How a Band of Entrepreneurs Are Bringing the Art and Business of Making Clothes Back Home by Steven Kurutz
It is no exaggeration to say that this book changed the way I shop. It made me aware of the many ways a society loses when it abandons domestic manufacturing. As a result of this book, I am more diligent about buying locally made goods when I can.James by Percival Everett
It's no surprise that James was the 2024 winner of the National Book Award. This provocative reimagining of Mark Twain's classic Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is a great piece of writing that's also an entertaining read.The Four Winds by Kristin Hannah
This novel introduced me to the brilliant historical fiction of Kristin Hannah. In this tale of a family's struggle to survive in Texas during the Dust Bowl crisis of the 1930s, Hannah's writing is so vivid you can feel the grit in your mouth.Grown Women by Sarai Johnson
This is a beautifully written novel about four generations of women, the varied ways they inflict damage on each other, and the way the love between mothers and daughters can bridge, if not entirely heal, those wounds.Impossible Creatures by Katherine Rundell
This luminous fantasy story needs to be shared with every 7- to 12-year-old you know. It is simply perfect.
Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt
I simply loved this novel. Our protagonist, Tova, is a widow in her 70's whose 18-year-old son vanished mysteriously over 30 years ago. Keeping busy helps her cope with her losses, so she works as a night janitor at the local aquarium. There, she develops an unlikely friendship with Marcellus, an octopus. This funny and touching story is all about second chances.The Frozen River by Ariel Lawhon
This is another remarkable work of historical fiction. Martha is a midwife in rural Maine during the late 18thcentury. Her commitment to serving her neighbors, especially the women whom society deemed unimportant, lands her at the center of a scandal. This suspenseful story is based on the diary of the real Martha Ballard.Filterworld: How Algorithms Flattened Culture by Kyle Chayka
While not a particularly entertaining read, this book illuminates the price we pay for allowing algorithmically driven social media platforms to dictate our tastes, choices, and behavior.
I'm looking forward to another good year filled with books. I'll be keeping my book list here and will share my favorites with you throughout the year.
Note: Book titles are linked to Bookshop.org, a non-profit that supports independent bookstores. These are affiliate links. If you make a purchase using these links, I may earn a small commission at no additional cost to you.
As always, I'm grateful for the time you spend reading this newsletter. I have a new knitting project percolating in my mind, and I'll share my inspiration, thought process, and swatch with you next week.
In the meantime, I'd love to hear how your year is going so far. Do you have a word of the year? Have you read a book lately which you think I'd enjoy? Tell me about it in the comments.
I also loved Remarkably Bright Creatures. One of my favorites from last year, too. I look forward to reading where “calm” takes you next year. I have to think deeply about what my word will be as I am also feeling quite unsettled about the upcoming year. Crafting (knitting and quilting right now) is helping center me, so I look forward to hearing what you are knitting up next.
Have you ever tried the app Goodreads to keep track of your books? I have used it for many years and it’s very helpful to keep me up-to-date on what I’ve read and what I want to read and helpfulsuggestions for new reads. You can take as much or little time as you want to set it up, but it’s very very helpful and you can also set reading goals for yourself. I usually Give myself 100 books to read in a year since I’ve been retired the last couple years. I’ve gone past that, but most of my reads are audiobooks.